The Mindset Behind Healing: Pain, Purpose & Success with Dr. Kevin Wernli

In this powerful episode of Owners Outlook, host Shaun Lord sits down with physiotherapist, researcher, and tech founder Dr. Kevin Wernli, whose journey weaves together elite sport, persistent pain science, human behaviour, and innovative healthcare solutions.

From dreaming of becoming an AFL player to completing a PhD with one of the world’s leading back-pain researchers, Kevin’s story is a reminder that success rarely follows a straight line. Today, he blends physiotherapy, psychology, and technology to transform the way people prepare for and recover from endometriosis surgery—supporting hundreds of individuals through his platform, Matilda.

Here’s what you can expect in this episode:

• How Kevin shifted from videography to physiotherapy

• The pivotal car ride that led him to a prestigious PhD program

• Why helping everyday people became more meaningful than elite sport

• How beliefs, fear, and stress shape our experience of pain

• Why posture matters less than we think

• The “Goldilocks principle” of recovery and movement

• The role of neuroplasticity and why the body is always capable of change

• How a simple dinner conversation led to a women’s-health startup

• Winning the Perth Biodesign accelerator

• Scaling from 15 to 150+ users—and what that growth taught him

• Why accountability and embracing imperfection helped him move forward

• Kevin’s struggle with perfectionism and procrastination, and the mindset work behind it

• How to care for your health when working at a desk

• The Japanese philosophy of Kintsugi—and why our “cracks” make us stronger

• His beautiful definition of what it means to own your success

Tune in to hear a warm, deeply human conversation that blends science, self-reflection, and genuine curiosity—one that reminds us that our stories, like our bodies, are always evolving.